What Matters (Blog)

What does it take to be an authentic, emotionally committed leader? You need to know who you are so that you can know what you believe and where you stand. This is not easy especially given that in any small space in our busy life, we take out our cell phone to check messages. What happened to the stillness of reflection?

Where did we lose the quiet moment? That quiet moment in which we might hear something or see something that we need to see. Perhaps it’s the sound of birds or the wind in the trees. Perhaps its our child needing to sit in our lap. What happened to us that we now think that we have to be checking every moment to see if someone wants us or someone needs us. Or is it the gratification that we are important because we have so many emails in our box?

You need to be still. Why? This is your one and only precious life. As a leader, you are given the opportunity to influence others. What comes with that is the moral obligation to touch others with your own humanity. Aristotle, in his Nichomachaen Ethics, said that, “Morality cannot be learnt simply by reading a treatise on virtue. The spirit of morality is awakened in the individual only through the witness and conduct of a moral person”.Be still and know. Find out what matters to you by being still and listening to yourself. This is a moral thing to do.

For you this may be the quiet of early morning sipping a fresh cup of coffee. For others it may be a walk along a quiet path or on a beach. It may be reflecting for a few moments after reading a good book. Still others may be
more determined and focused. They may decide to meditate and let the silence calm and speak to them. To meditate is a wonderful thing. It allows you to be still and know who you are.

Who was she this southern black girl born in the 5th Ward of Houston, Texas? A president, a governor, congress men and women attended her funeral. “When she walked in the room, she made you want to do something for her” “She embodied the word integrity”.

In a world that sways on the winds of trends and polls and prognostications she was a constant and she was as true as the north star. Barbara Jordan was an American original and a national treasure. And she was my friend. Ann Richards, Former governor of Texas.

Barbara Jordon was the epitome of the emotionally committed leader. She stood on the platform of integrity and enormous character. People who heard her speak knew they were listening to someone great. Great leaders move us. They ignite our passion and inspire the best in us. When we try to explain why they are so effective, we speak of strategy, vision, or powerful ideas. But the reality is much more primal. No matter what leaders set out to do—whether it’s creating strategy or mobilizing teams to action—their success depends on how they do it. Even if they get everything else just right, if leaders fail in this primal task of driving emotions in the right direction, nothing they do will work as well as it could or should.

This emotional task of the leader is primal. First it is the ground of being. You must not be separate from what you believe. You must own it, not to persuade others but to own who you are and what you stand for. It is both the original and the most important act of leadership. When you embody what you believe then you become emotionally compelling. In any moment in history or in the present the leader in any human group has been the one to whom others look for assurance and clarity when facing uncertainty or threat, or when there’s a job to be done.

Enjoy this clip of Barbara Jordon bringing emotional and ethical clarity to the Watergate hearings.

It is commonly thought in many organizations that to have commitment from employees there needs to be a set of values that people can believe in. These values will engender loyalty and enthusiasm from employees and have a direct effect on the bottom line. This set of values is thought to be the central core of the business. Care and energy is given to naming these values and to make sure that they are well known through out the organization. Even though values are important to an organization, there is something missing here.

People bring their own values to work. If you find that you can freely live your values in your working life then you are going to be truly committed to that organization. Being truly committed to your work means that you are going to make sure that it succeeds because if fuels and nourishes you.

This point is subtle and more often than not overlooked. Emotionally committed leaders are not just aware and present, they understand the subtle difference between hoping people will adhere to corporate values and making sure that people can express and live their own values. It’s called integrity. The first cause can’t always be the company. In fact the first cause for emotionally committed leaders is to make sure that it is safe to bring your own humanity to work.

The complexities of leadership are many. One moment you are a hero, the next you get blindsided by the neediness of someone’s ego. One of the main purposes in starting this blog is to write about the different ways leaders can get tangled up in their own thinking. Also the purpose of this blog and my work is to help you stay grounded and insightful about the ways you get in your own way. Much has been written about the characteristics of leaders. There is only one point in which everyone agrees: Good leadership has willing followers.
To be a good leader is to know yourself and be the kind of person you would want to follow. Sounds easy, well it’s not. Psychological insight is in short supply especially when one needs it the most. How are you when you are being attacked? Do you just want to get even or maybe put that person on your black list? How you are able to handle yourself and not react is a hallmark of wise leadership. In order to do this you must be very, very honest with yourself.

My job is not to tell you the easy things but to respect you and help you see the hard stuff worth knowing. You can learn great rules of management and leadership in many places. It is a rare place that you can find truth about yourself.

A colleague recently told me about attending a high school reunion. He was really surprised when an old friend told him that his wife had just left him after 30 years. It seems that the man’s wife had also attended her high school reunion and reconnected with her high school sweetheart. She decided to leave her husband and marry the first love of her life. Who hasn’t had some sort of fantasy like that?

Do you ever think back to your own fond memories of a sweetheart and long for that feeling again? Helen Fisher, noted anthropologist and expert on romantic love tells us that there are three major drives in our brain with regard to love: the sex drive, the romantic love drive and the attachment drive. While there are many reasons we evolved this way, it seems that the romantic love drive is extremely strong… even stronger than any addiction. Think about the strength of that love. You were probably willing to go to the ends of the earth for that person. You wrote his/her name down hundreds of times. You talked for hours on the phone. No wonder we daydream about lost loves and spend time wondering if perhaps that old love was the “real” thing after all. That romantic love drive is so strong sometimes it can mask the real work of building a mature lasting love. Even if that romantic drive happened with your long term partner, often we wonder if perhaps there is something wrong not to have those feeling anymore.

When I was a young intern, my best friend also a graduate student, had a terrible time managing her feelings for one of her clients. We all wanted to help her so we were full of advice about how she should get counseling herself, meditate, perhaps even transfer her client to another counselor. Nothing seemed to help. She worried about it all the time and felt so guilty. Finally, she spoke about it to her supervisor. He listened to her for a long time as she poured out all her angst and guilt. As she told it to us, hearing enough, in his wise way, he turned to her and simply said “Why don’t you just enjoy it?

I was shocked to say the least. However, as I fully grasped the advice and realized how relieved my friend was, I understood deeply what freedom he had given her. She could have her feelings. She didn’t need to be afraid of them. She didn’t need to do anything. It seemed too simple. However, no denying the way that simple idea made the world right again for my friend. In Buddhist terms this is called being present with what is. As we relax and accept whatever feelings we are having, they become less powerful and compelling. We can be a witness to the workings of our own heart and mind. We can respond in a wise way to whatever feelings arise and not react out of them.

When that old love of yours finds you on Facebook or gives you a call or when those old feelings come knocking at your heart again “Why don’t you just enjoy it?”

We are here to lead and yet we are also here to find that dimension in ourselves that is deeper than thought. Finding this deeper dimension, allows us the freedom to be alive and to be the person that others want to follow. There is a way to know yourself other than the identity that you live by everyday. There is so much more.

Be the leader you would want to follow. To be is the optimal word here. It’s not about doing but about being still, finding enough internal solitude and space to understand yourself in way that you have not allowed before.Lost

“Stand still. The trees ahead and bushes beside you Are not lost. Wherever you are is called Here, And you must treat it as a powerful stranger, Must ask permission to know it and be known. The forest breathes. Listen. It answers, I have made this place around you. If you leave it, you may come back again saying Here. No trees are the same to Raven. No two branches are the same to Wern If what a tree or a bush does is lost on you, You are surely lost. Stand still. The forest knows Where you are. You must let it find you.” David Wagoner

In the many years that I have worked with leaders, one of the central problems that comes up is the the difficulty in understanding that all things change. Most people who lead want to control. Some for control sake and others because they strongly believe that this is the only way to lead. All things change, and if we expect them not to change and get attached to how things “should” be then there is pain and suffering. In some traditions, it is said that the leader follows “the wisdom of uncertainty”. Understanding and learning to stay centered in the midst of change is a wise way to lead and to live.

Each relationship is made up of three people. The two human beings who commit to be together and the third being or living covenant they create by their intention. This being, like all of us must be nourished in order to thrive.

This covenant must be held as a sacred bond in the relationship and it needs a place to be safe and grow as the relationship grows. A safe place in a relationship is sometimes called a container, one can also think of this place as a vessel such as a chalice which would hold sacred wine. Creating a strong vessel is the key to strong relationships. Think of the relationships that you respect and admire. What is most true about them is the care they take to keep their bond, their container strong. In coming posts, I will discuss ways to nurture and create a healthy vessel for your relationship. For now please read a most wonderful story from Richard Seltzer, surgeon at Yale Medical School who tells of a couple with a very strong container in his book Doctor Stories (Amazon.com)

“I stand by the bed where a young woman lies her face post operative her mouth twisted in palsy, clownish. A tiny twig of facial nerve the one connected to her mouth has been severed. She will be this way from now on. The surgeon has followed with religious fervor the curve of her flesh, I promise you that. Nevertheless to remove the tumor in her cheek, I had to cut the little nerve.

Her young husband is in the room. He stands on the opposite side of the bed and together they seem to dwell in the evening lamp light apart from me, private. Who are they? This wry mouth that I have made? Who gaze at, and and touch each other so generously.

The woman speaks…”Will my mouth always be like this, she asks? Yes, I say it will. It is because the nerve was cut. She nods, is silent. But the young man smiles. “I like it, he says, it’s kind of cute.”

All at once, I now who he is. I understand and I lower my gaze. One is not bold in an encounter with a God. Unaware of my presence, he bends to kiss her crooked mouth and I, so close, can see how he twists his own lips to accommodate hers. To show her that their kiss still works.

And I remember that the gods appeared in ancient Greece as mortals. And I hold my breath and let the wonder in.”

Did you ever wonder why we blame other people for things that happen in our own lives? Did you ever wonder why it seems so effortless to blame our partner for our own unhappiness?

Did you know that understanding the roots of blaming is the key to healing your relationship? Behind every blaming statement there is an unmet need that you have. If your partner is blaming you for something, he or she has an unmet need wanting to be heard.

For instance Carrie was furious with David because he was always online and never seemed to be engaged with her in the evenings. She blamed him for their lack of closeness. Even though there was an element of truth in her complaint, her anger drove him further and further away. Her unmet need was for safety because of her deep fear of abandonment. Through counseling she learned to be aware and acknowledge her deep need for connection and the way she was blaming David out of her fear. Expressing this need to him in a loving and non blaming way brought them closer. This “softening” allows them to begin to heal and repair their interactions. It also allowed David to admit to his fear of her anger and his need to protect himself by distancing from her.

These are two very basic strategies that couples use to deal with the fear that arises when there is not a safe connection in relationship. The first is to be caught in fear of abandonment and demand responsiveness by blaming. As with Carrie and David this often backfires and pushes the other away. The second tactic is to numb out feelings and needs and to avoid engagement with the other by withdrawing.

It takes real courage to turn to your partner and ask for what you need. This takes incredible strength. As noted marriage researcher, Sue Johnson says, You ask for the emotional support and reassurance you need. Each time you can do this and your partner can respond you are building a safe haven relationship that no amount of outside stress can destroy. We know that when partners can do this they are stronger and more confident as individuals and they create stronger more loving bonds

We need it now. Some soothing, some comfort, some grace from a world that seems at times to have gone mad. The killing of innocent children, politicians who can’t come together, natural disasters like hurricane Sandy and the oil spill, Syria , a senseless shooting of innocent people by a disgruntled employee, all of this reminds us that we must take care of each other and nourish our relationships, the innocent animals and beings who depend on us and our fragile planet.

Kathleen Dean Moore has written an incredible book called Wild Comfort. After experiencing a year of despair, sorrow and loss she turned to the rhythms of nature in order to make sense of that loss. In her travels to the desert, forests and oceans, she observed the life around her – the birdsong, the beetles, the cry of a loon, a feather brushed by the breeze – and she wrote. The result is a book of essays which are full of grace and filled with wisdom; a book of meditation about the seasons and cycles of the earth and the living creatures who inhabit it. Such a title, such grace. After reading it today, I left everything on my desk just as it was. I made my way outside almost as if I was answering a prayer. Sitting on my front porch here deep in the woods on the Cape, I was comforted beyond measure. The birds were out in droves, butterflies too. Is there anything more innocent than a bird, a little chickadee, deciding to honor me with its presence here on my front porch. Bella my chihuahua, sits on my lap, leaning into me with her small warmth. All of us drinking in the holiness of this present moment, this place.

In some way this very personal, intimate book is able to connect our emotions with the wonder of the natural world. Jane Hirschfield says about this book: “In its grounded wisdoms, humility, curiosity, and in the kaleidoscope beauty of its descriptions, Wild Comfort reminds how to see, how to sing; how to welcome, with equal gravity and grace, whatever asks entrance into our lives. It is destined to become a classic.”

I am overcome by gratitude for this book, a reminder of the comfort and refuge there is in wild natural places. Like the grace of the moon sliding out from the clouds on a dark night.

Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment.” – Lao Tzu
In my 20 years of working with top executives and other high performers, I know that IQ is not the reason that most leaders fail in their objectives. Rather it is lack of EQ, Emotional Intelligence. Most leadership experts acknowledge that leaders who are low in Emotional Intelligence often don’t succeed. In fact, current research suggests that great leadership performance is directly proportional to your level of Emotional Intelligence, of which Self Awareness is perhaps the most important ingredient

So what is Self Awareness?

It is simply ‘knowing who you are’ and understanding why you think, feel and behave the way you do.

Why is it so important? Because without it you are doomed to repeat the same old mistakes you made last week/month/year. Without it you can never get out of your own way and breakthrough the internal barriers to your own growth.

The three most skillful ways to increase your self awareness are to 1) learn to be “mindful”. This is a special type of awareness practice which teaches you to recognize not what your are thinking but how your mind works. It teaches you to understand when you are caught in destructive patterns of thought and to be less attached to this thinking. Meditation practices are the best tool to develop mindfulness. 2) To give yourself a powerful, compassionate, wise no excuses type coach/mentor. 3) To surround yourself with a group of peers who will give you honest feedback.

By harnessing the power of self-awareness you will be able to:

Make better decisions – from a place of greater objectivity. Reduce your level of stress. Be able to communicate and collaborate better with the people you work with – clients, boss, peers, suppliers, staff. Communicate more effectively in general – tailoring your message to the deeply held concerns of your listener. Increase your prospects for career advancement – by increasing your level of emotional intelligence

Self-awareness requires honesty and courage. It is not easy to get in touch with what we are thinking and feeling and to face the truth about ourselves. Exploring our inner core is not for the faint hearted. The benefit however, is true freedom and peace of mind.

Self-management and empathy are prerequisites for being able to handle and inspire emotions in other people. Without this leaders will struggle to establish sustainable, authentic relationships.